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The Camping and Caravanning Club has appointed its new Chairman, Mel Hill, replacing Anne Dearling, who previously held the position from 2014-16.

Mel, from Mexborough, South Yorkshire, was appointed by the Club’s National Council during its November 2016 meeting at the Club’s Coventry headquarters.

Mel, a retired Construction Manager, has a long and rich history with the Club. After a short time away from camping and caravanning, he re-joined the Club in 1987. Since starting off as a tent camper at school, he moved on to frame tents, trailer tents and caravans – he now owns a Lunar.

Robert Louden MBE, the Club’s Director General, said: “Mel has camping and caravanning in his blood, and is a great ambassador for the Club.

Mel, a retired Construction Manager, has a long and rich history with the Club. After a short time away from camping and caravanning, he re-joined the Club in 1987. Since starting off as a tent camper at school, he moved on to frame tents, trailer tents and caravans – he now owns a Lunar.

Robert Louden MBE, the Club’s Director General, said: “Mel has camping and caravanning in his blood, and is a great ambassador for the Club.

“He continues to be active within his local District Association and has held many important positions as a member of the National Council over the years. Most recently, he was the Club’s Vice Chairman between 2014 and 2016, before being elected Chairman in November – a fitting recognition of his hard work and commitment.”

Mel continues to use his touring caravan most weekends, both when fulfilling duties as Chairman and enjoying local Club unit camping meets and events.

He said: “The touring industry continues to grow and more and more young families are joining us and getting into camping. The types of units available are changing to meet the needs of modern campers too, and manufacturers are developing new ranges and adopting new technologies to make camping more accessible and exciting.”

Along with the Chairman’s appointment, the National Council also elected Phil Henson as the new Club Vice-Chairman to work alongside Mel. Anne Dearling, who held the post of Club Chairman for the previous two years, now becomes Immediate Past Chairman.

The Camping and Caravanning Club is 115-years-old and appointed TV presenter Julia Bradbury as its Club President in 2013 – the first female to be bestowed with the title in history. The Club works with Julia, as well as explorer and Club Vice President Bear Grylls, and naturalist Chris Packham, to highlight the benefits of getting outdoors with camping.

Charlotte Adams is an upcoming photography student, based in Birmingham, who explores a variety of differing methods and techniques within her field. Experimenting with conceptual photography, this particular series investigates the themes of growth vs decay in the technologically evolving world. For this project, Adams visited the Black Country Living Museum which is situated in Dudley, Birmingham. The key topic of war is conveyed by the artist through the inclusion of ‘old fashioned’ objects, primarily used during the 1940s — like the ration books. By this, Adams is urging her audience to reflect on life during World War II, while considering modern day society, and how norms and values have moved on. For instance, the decaying number of men working in factories due to pressures to enroll in the British Army encouraged a growth in working women; which eventually altered society’s view of women and allowed for more progressive ideas of equal rights for gender roles.

RESTRICTED TREATS

The photograph, “Restricted treats,” evokes a strong sense of empathy for everyone hit by the struggles of everyday life created by the devastating effects of the War, while mainly focusing on the children involved — who may be yours, or your children’s grandparents in modern day. Although younger children may have not completely understood the consequences of such harsh times, they would have certainly felt the lack of sweets and treats available to them; resulting in an innocent depiction of tragic circumstances, emotive to any viewer.

CUE THE DREAMY POSE

Sadly, the tragic irony of the simplicity of this image is naturally communicated by the taped windows, in attempt to protect the glass from shattering under pressures from air-rade bomb blasts. Today, we see windows as a frequent setting for dreamy, romantic scenes in films, or as a place for quiet and therapeutic deep-thinking. However, during World War II, the window would simply be a place to avoid standing near.

RED AND GREEN

The play on words of ‘red’ and ‘green’ in this title symbolises not only the dominant colours within this photograph, but also that of the British flags main hues. As we all know, the British flag doesn’t contain the colour green, but blue instead. The inclusion of ‘green’ instead of ‘blue’ conveys the decay of Britain during the war, due to the deviation caused by heavy artillery and constant bomb attacks. Eventually, poppies grew in these tragic battle fields and restored hope, love and humanity in the broken people of Britain as they grew — hence the title “Red and Green”.

WORKING WOMEN

While the majority of their male counterparts were called to fight against the Nazi regime, women were left to do their original jobs of working in factories to produce ammunition, artillery and other key tools. Because of this, society’s perspective of women had changed permanently, as they were accepted to be more equal to men as they ever had been before. If women had not had the opportunity to step up and help out, even if it wasn’t their ‘natural place’ or ‘proper role,’ maybe gender equality wouldn’t be as progressive as it is in modern day. So, this image celebrates the women of World War II, as well as the men, in their courageous and inspiring efforts in order to keep Britain as strong as it currently is, and always has been.

Created by the author Ian Fleming, who actually worked for the British Naval Intelligence, JamesBond is the secret agent who just keeps getting better. This JamesBond Infographic explores the characters that have made the series exceptional.

Beacon Hill in Worcestershire has long been famous for the eccentric Broadway Tower built in 1799 by Sir William George, the 6th Earl of Coventry, but not many people know that just 180 metres to the north is the once secret R.O.C. Nuclear Bunker used by the Royal Observer Corps between 1959 and September 1991. In response to the growing threat of Nuclear war with the Warsaw Pact countries 1,653 mini-bunkers were built across Britain to provide alerts about incoming missiles and to provide accurate blast intensity and location reports to the regional nuclear command centres. These manned posts were considered to be more reliable than radar and other sensitive electronic equipment that was likely to be destroyed early on by the powerful EMP (Electro-magnetic Pulses) of a nuclear explosion. Not all of the observers were expected to survive.

Hidden away in a small Shropshire village are the remains of a fortified manor house and the sides of an old Barn. Both buildings have a significant relevance to the history and evolution of modern government and democracy as we know it today. Sometime between 1283 and 1285 King Edward I (the first) called a parliament which was held in the large barn adjacent to Acton Burnell Castle. What made this meeting different was that for the first time commoners as well as nobles (Barons) took part in the event.

Located in the rural heart of Wiltshire is one of the oldest and most mysterious ancient monuments in Britain. Older than Stonehenge , the Avebury Neolithic Stone circle is also the largest in the world and is also one of the most accessible. The central feature consists of a large henge enclosed by a bank and a ditch. A huge outer stone circle surrounds at least three separate smaller stone circles – two of which partially survive today. Two significant megalithic routes lead to the henge. One, the West Kennet Avenue is still partially intact (above). The site has been the subject of study since the 17th century but still remains an enigma. Here are ten of the most interesting Avebury mysteries:

Hedgehogs are wonderful little creatures and everyone seems to love them … but the evidence strongly suggests that their numbers are falling across Britain. A vast amount of the UK is either used for agriculture or gardens and this has meant that hedgehogs can find it all a bit tough. Most people would like see more hedgehogs so here’s a list of the top ten ways to help.

Britain is a country of bird lovers. From the Golden Eagles of Scotland to the humble garden sparrows of suburbia they’re part of the nation’s cultural way of life. Here are the top ten ways that every person in the United Kingdom can help.

Britain has contributed literally thousands of inventions to the advancement of mankind. However, it’s very rare for an invention, no matter how simple or complex, to be named after its inventor. Here are ten everyday products that did take the name of their British creators.

The remaining population of red squirrels in the UK is thought to be 120,000 of which roughly 75% of these are located in Scotland. Grey squirrels currently out number reds by around 66 to 1 in England. Red squirrels live for an average of three years in the wild but have been known to live for up to 10 years in a protected environment.

For a variety of reasons the British red squirrel is one of the UK’s most threatened species and is still in need of urgent protection and intervention. Over the years several factors have had a very negative impact on red squirrel numbers. Perhaps the most serious was the mass deforestation of Britain that has taken place at various times in this country’s history. In fairness, this had a devastating impact on all woodland creatures. Just as bad was the attitude of some estate owners. For many years red squirrels were also seen as a threat and a pest. Gamekeepers often had instructions to kill them. Fortunately, this practice stopped in 1920. Currently, the main threats to red squirrels are:

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